The Warriors placed four players on the second team. Sophomore tailback Kendrick Williams, redshirt senior wide receiver Ed Kiser and redshirt junior center Dan Caffrey represent the offense, and junior safety Herschel Thornton is a second team selection on defense, giving ESU two defensive backs on the All-PSAC East team for the first time since 2004.
Freed earned his second straight first team selection and third overall All-PSAC East award after placing second in the PSAC in tackles (120, 10.9 per game), tied for fifth in tackles for a loss (14, 1.27 per game) and tied for seventh in sacks (7.5). He is the only player in the PSAC to rank in the top 10 in all three categories and had 80 tackles, 10.5 TFL and 6.5 sacks in seven PSAC East games – all among the top four in the conference.
In the final national statistical rankings of the regular season, Freed was ninth in Division II in tackles and tied for fourth in solo tackles (67, 6.09 per game). He had double-figures in tackles in eight games this year and 24 of the 34 starts in his career. Freed also contributed two forced fumbles, a fumble recovery and an interception as a senior and had 399 tackles, 45.0 TFL, 22.5 sacks, four forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries and five interceptions in his career.
Castillo was named to the All-PSAC East first team after finishing second in the PSAC in passes defended (1.45 per game – 3 interceptions, 13 pass breakups) during the 2010 season. All three of his interceptions and eight of his pass breakups came in conference games. Castillo started 38 games in his career and had nine interceptions and 36 pass breakups. His 45 passes defended are in the top 20 in Division II since 2000.
Thornton was a second team choice at defensive back following his first season at ESU. An NJCAA All-American at Lackawanna College last year, Thornton was second on the Warriors and tied for 11th in the PSAC with 82 tackles and had three interceptions and two pass breakups. His 49 solo tackles were sixth in the conference and included at least six tackles in all but one game of the 2010 season. He had season-highs with 11 tackles and nine solo stops in the second game of the season vs. IUP.
The Warriors’ three offensive selections contributed to a unit that was second in the PSAC in passing (259.6 ypg), fifth in total offense (385.5 ypg) and fifth in scoring (31.9 ppg).
Williams had 124 carries for 668 yards and nine touchdowns, along with 10 catches for 78 yards and a touchdown. He had one of the great three-game runs in school history late in the season, running for 339 yards and eight touchdowns and a pair of 100-yard games against Millersville and Shippensburg. Williams tied a school record with four rushing TDs vs. Millersville and ran for three vs. Cheyney the next week, setting an ESU record with seven rushing TDs over two games. He is the first ESU running back on an All-PSAC East team since Joe Patridge in 2007.
Kiser led the Warriors with 57 catches for 860 yards and five touchdowns and ranked sixth in the PSAC in both receptions (5.2) and yards (78.2) per game. He finished his career with four straight 100-yard games – 148 yards and two TDs at Millersville, 133 and a TD vs. Cheyney, 133 vs. Shippensburg and 109 yards and a TD on nine catches at Edinboro – and was the first ESU receiver with 50 catches in a season since Evan Prall in 2006. He had at least three catches in every game this season and caught a pass over the final 34 games of his career, the longest streak at ESU since 2002.
Caffrey has started all 34 games at center since the start of his redshirt freshman year in 2008 and is ESU’s first all-conference center since Dan Crozier in 2004 and 2005. He took over the leadership role held by left tackle Morgan Thomas last season and guided a group that included a redshirt junior, two redshirt sophomores and a redshirt freshman and also broke in a true freshman for one start.
Caffrey and Matt Marshall were the Warriors’ center and quarterback for 24 straight games through the end of the 2010 season. Marshall finished his career ranked third at ESU in total offense (7,061) and fourth in passing yards (6,403) and TDs (61), and had 2,513 passing yards, 26 touchdowns and 2,819 yards of total offense as a senior.
Five of ESU’s six All-PSAC East selections were starters on the Warriors’ NCAA Playoff team last season that went 8-4, and Freed, Castillo, Kiser and Caffrey were also starters and key contributors on a 9-2 team in 2008.
ESU finished the 2010 season with a 3-8 record and tied the school record with five losses by a touchdown or less. The Warriors’ strength of schedule through the first seven weeks was the 10th-toughest in terms of opponents’ winning percentage in Division II.
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